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Now that Kellen was seated again, he found that his legs couldn’t remain still. The failure of his plan had an unintended consequence that he was coming to regret – his plate was empty, and that meant he had nothing to occupy himself, beyond his classmates. Instinctively, his eyes wandered around the hall. Not too far from him were Clarissa and Jorah, the two Deer. Jorah appeared to be wearing some sort of… make-up? Kellen had never seen something like it, besides a far more garish mask his great aunt had sported whenever she arrived at the keep. For half a second, he could swear the two were looking at him. What were they saying? Was it his empty plate? Or were they looking at his classmates?

It was only after a moment that he tuned back in to realize Auberon was speaking to said classmates. It wasn’t the words that caught his attention, but the tone. For the first time, he almost sounded… approving? It was this thought that cause him to sit up slightly and pay attention. He smiled feverishly as Auberon gave him a nod while mentioning future sparring sessions. [color=63a2e4]“Wonderful.”[/color] He said, though it was more of a whisper. He looked down towards his plate, remembering sadly that there was nothing there to occupy him. [color=63a2e4]“I’d, um, prefer not to do anything in the stables. Or get stuck on a Pegasus. Actually, if you could keep me inside that’s likely for the best.”[/color] He stopped himself short of saying he’d help Auberon with is paperwork. For one, Kellen found it difficult to work productively at the best of times, and had little interest in administrative matters. Worse than that though, Kellen knew time spent with Auberon would lead to discussions, discussions would lead to questions, and questions would lead to more displays of incompetence and anxiety. 

Kellen knew better than to whip his head to the side to gauge Lienna’s reaction to Auberon’s overt comment about her table manners. He did his best to contain a smile at her quick jab back. As much as he was aware of his position, he too had trade insults about the nobility whenever his sister had started to behave too haughtily. Not that they had ever had the same bite that Lienna’s verbal barbs did. For half a moment, he felt at home, sitting around the table with a plate he had cleared too quickly and watching his siblings bicker. Nevermind if the conflict was a bit more serious. The soft smile on his face remained even as Auberon made mention of his attire. He looked down at his messy sleeves. [color=63a2e4]“I really hope they aren't all like this. I think my parents used my old measurements.” 

That warm feeling in his chest turned to ice as he saw a blur whip through the door to the dining hall. Normally he would have subconsciously had his eyes trained on the entrances and exits to the large room, but he had let his guard down. All he noticed was a fuzzy bit of movement before he saw several guards give chase. A green-haired man was brought down to his knees as the Golden Deer’s professor stepped forward with a bow. As his eyes took in the scene, his body remained stock still. He immediately recognized the feeling of his chest tightening and his breath getting shorter. Were there more of them? Was he armed? 

His thinking was interrupted by Lienna, who he noticed had knocked over her own chair and bumped into his. This was enough to spur him to action, as he shot up quickly and his hand instinctively went to his hip. Of course, there was nothing there. Kellen had left his blade in his room.  But that instinctual motion brought him a slight bit of comfort. The rogue appeared to be subdued, and with the large number of guards in the room, Kellen realized they were in no real danger. It was only after had made that assessment that he could take in what the man was saying. Something about the Mark? Kellen had to assume that meant crests. His time out west had quickly exposed him to the way some felt about crests. But he wasn’t sure what he meant when he said [color=springgreen]when [i]she[/i] comes…[/color] Who was he referring to? And what did he mean by bringing the world to its knees? He looked to his fellow students to see if they showed any sign of recognition.

It was as he examined his classmates reactions that he noticed Lienna was still quite upset. Looking down at his own hands, he was surprised to note that they were quite still. It was only after he took a deep breath that they resumed their customary fidgeting. He had half a mind to try and comfort her, but realized that the last thing she wanted was for her reaction to draw any more attention. He sat down slowly, turning his head towards Lienna. [color=63a2e4]“It doesn’t seem as though they’re very discerning in who they let through the gate. Not that we paid much attention either, but the keep wasn’t as accessible as the facilities here.”[/color]He tried his best to muster up a smile. The speed with which the intruder had been dealt with gave him a small shred of comfort, but it wasn’t much.

He was surprised when he saw the Crown Prince of the Adrestian Empire – was it alright to call him Kayden? – approach their table. He titled his head downwards as an approximation of a bow, though his neck straightened back up far too quick to sell the façade of nonchalance. [color=63a2e4]“Of course! I’m – erm -- finished, so you can grab my seat if you’d like.”[/color] Of course, there was plenty of space at the table, but Kellen wasn’t sure what level of deference he was expected to show to the future ruler of the Adrestian Empire.